An exhaustive and authoritative investigation into the Christadelphians with links from their own sources as well as insights from former members. Complete examination of their history, organisation, theology, practices, and the challenges they face.

“High Church” Christadelphians

The following article was published in a Christadelphian Magazine,The Fraternal
Visitor in May 1894 and followed “the Inspiration Controversy” when a new magazine
(The Exegetist) published a consideration of how the Bible was inspired. This
eventually led to a
Foundation Statement being added to the statement of faith and separating
from all congregations who would not add it to theirs. The article shows contemporary
concerns by many Christadelphians to the increasing requirement to give express
agreement to defined creedal positions. The objections were about a change
in the values expressed by the movement initially, rather than wide ranging variances
of belief. They wanted the movement to continue to allow greater liberality
of thought in line with the initial foundational beliefs promoted. They saw
in this creedal approach the development of church authority which had been condemned
initially as restrictive to the principle of
independence of thought.

A sense of unease had also grown since previous creedal movements and a sense of
how dissent had been handled. Many disliked the new position towards “heretics”
as the movement had been a rebellious movement anyway in promoting a free-thinking
outlook. The new authoritarianism which they saw as being led by a “one-man
leadership” did not sit well with them. This referred to Robert Roberts, who
was eventually to take the majority of the movement with him. His position
was described in Sects and Society by
Bryan R. Wilson as “primus inter pares” or “first amongst equals”.
In other words, technically everyone was equal as brothers, in practice he was the
leader. After his death nobody has had the position or ability to coordinate
a change in the statements of faith other than to form another minority grouping,
and probably no-one can now do so.